With the New Delhi district declared as a controlled zone for the G20 Summit, online deliveries of food and other products will get impacted in the region. This will impact restaurants, platforms as well as gig workers in the region. While the authorities have clarified that restrictions will impact only the controlled zone, some feel there could even be some rub-off effect on other regions of the city due to traffic restrictions.
Loss of biz
Prakul Kumar, Secretary General, National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) said, “The restaurant industry was looking forward to heightened business activities during the G20 weekend. However, it has been decided to shut down restaurants and retail stores in the New Delhi district. While we understand that certain security protocols are required but this will definitely lead to a business loss for the restaurant industry.”
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He said that while Delhi Police has clarified that only certain regions are facing restrictions but added that one will need to see the on-ground situation as there could be the impact on footfalls in other parts of the city too due to traffic restrictions. “We have urged the authorities to allow restaurants to at least continue doing food deliveries during the weekend in the controlled zones and also allow the movement of essential food materials required by the restaurants to operate during this period,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, as per estimates by the Forum of Internet Retailers, Sellers and Traders (FIRST), the restrictions in parts of NDMC area will impact nearly 9,000 gig workers. “Usually, when such global events are hosted in international cities such as New York and Geneva, food deliveries , retail and restaurants are allowed to operate normally. So it has come as a surprise for retailers, restaurants and gig workers that they will be facing restrictions during this period in the New Delhi district,” said Vinod Kumar, President, India SME Forum, and Trustee and President, FIRST India.
He added that the ban on deliveries in the NDMC region will have a significant impact on platform, gig workers, delivery executives and cloud kitchens. “Gig workers earn anywhere from ₹500-1,200 a day on an average. The restrictions over three days will have a significant impact on gig workers in these areas as they do not have the social security net like white collar employees do,” he added.